


Hug It Out

by aspiringwordsmith



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Sleepy Cuddles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-09
Updated: 2017-06-09
Packaged: 2018-11-11 12:04:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11148030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aspiringwordsmith/pseuds/aspiringwordsmith
Summary: In which Jeremy cries over the ending of a book and Michael can’t believe what a cute geek he’s dating.





	Hug It Out

**Author's Note:**

> This is gay and I’m gay and you’re all gay, too. How many times can I write ‘warm’ and ‘soft’ in single ficlet? read to find out. Jerm’s definitely not wearing the same [pajamas](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/c5/33/00/c533007f03bf5501443d263f7d45e67d.jpg) as me, that’s definitely not a thing. Also, I had a lot of fun thinking about the parallels between FrodoSam & boyf riends and you should definitely come talk to me about it. 
> 
> Find me on tumblr at [bloodclawspause](https://bloodclawspause.tumblr.com/), my BMC sideblog, or on my main, [preciouscauliflower](https://preciouscauliflower.tumblr.com/).

“What part are you up to?” 

“More or less the same part I was at when you asked me five minutes ago, Michael.”

Michael twisted around on Jeremy’s bed so that his head hung over the side, pouting upside-down at the book blocking Jeremy’s face. Reaching blindly around him, he snagged one of Jeremy’s pillows and tossed it at his head. “Well, read faster. I wanna know what you think.”

Jeremy gave a long-suffering sigh and lowered the book. “Dude, if you keep interrupting me, I’m never gonna finish.” He tossed the pillow back at his boyfriend, and it landed on his stomach with a satisfying _fwump_. “Honestly, between you and Christine, I can’t catch a break.”

Michael twisted right-side up again, hugging the pillow to his chest. “Wait, Christine’s into _Lord of the Rings_?”

Jeremy snorted. “Oh, yeah. She saw me reading _The Two Towers_ before rehearsal and practically attacked me. Something about Tolkien being a classic storyteller, redefined high fantasy as we know it, blah-blah-blah.” He smiled fondly. “She was four minutes into an analysis of Eowyn’s parallels to Macbeth when Mr. Reyes finally stopped her.”

“Good lord,” said Michael, amused. Then, “…she is right, though, you know. It’s a total “fuck-you” to Shakespeare–”

“Not you too!” Jeremy groaned.

“Right, sorry. You keep reading, and I’ll be over here, being…quiet.”

Jeremy settled deeper into his beanbag chair and picked up the book again. “Don’t you have homework you wanted to get done?”

Michael frowned. “Yeah, but it’s _Friday_ …” he whined. “And this is a _sleepover_ …”

“Dude, you sleep over every other weekend,” Jeremy pointed out. “Besides, if you do it now, we can marathon the Hobbit movies tomorrow and the Lord of the Rings trilogy on Sunday…”

Mr. Heere was on a business trip to the west coast for the weekend, so the two boys had the house to themselves until he was due to return on Sunday evening. Neither boy had any obligations that weekend, so they were free to spend the two days however they pleased. A Tolkien mega-marathon sounded pretty good to Michael. “Deal,” he said quickly. “But you’re proofreading this essay when it’s done.”

Jeremy beamed up at him. “Sure,” he agreed. “What’s a little more reading?”

* * *

One essay and several chapters of _Return of the King_ later, Michael rose, stretched, and went to change into the pajamas he’d brought with him. His t-shirt was comfy enough that he probably could’ve just slept in that and his boxers, but he knew for a fact that Jeremy thought he looked cute in his flannel sleep pants. When he returned, Jeremy had changed too and was stretched out on his bed, eyes glued to the book. He looked soft and content in a too-big Star Trek t-shirt. Something fluttered pleasantly in Michael’s stomach as he looked at him.

“Ready to call it quits?” he asked. It was already past 2 am, and it had been a long day at school.

“Lemme finish this chapter,” Jeremy murmured.

“Whatever, you dork. I’m going to sleep,” Michael declared, flinging himself onto Jeremy. Jeremy huffed out a laugh, adjusting their positions so that Michael’s weight was supported half by him, half by the bed. Michael’s arms came up to wrap around Jeremy’s chest where his head was pillowed, hands sliding between Jeremy’s back and the mattress below. Jeremy kept on supporting his book with one hand, eyes barely leaving the page. His other hand came to rest in Michael’s hair, scratching idly at his scalp. Michael hummed, pleased, and tried to settle into his touch. They’d been officially dating for about two months, but Michael couldn’t help but feel a jittery surge of warmth every time they touched.

Jeremy must’ve noticed his nervous energy, because his fingers were gently massaging the shell of Michael’s ear in the soothing way their therapist showed them. “Do you want me to turn the lamp off?” offered Jeremy.

Michael could hear the reluctance in his voice, and he grinned. “No, you finish your book. I can sleep just fine like this,” he said, nuzzling into Jeremy’s chest for effect. It was a testament to how engrossed Jeremy was in his book that he didn’t even look down at his boyfriend’s antics.

Michael could feel Jeremy’s heartbeat, slow and steady where his cheek pressed against Jeremy’s pajama shirt. Soothed by that rhythm and by the occasional soft sound of a page turning, Michael drifted into a contented sleep within minutes.

When he woke a few hours later, Michael’s mind registered several things at once before he opened his eyes. One, he could feel a cool spot at the corner of his mouth where he’d apparently drooled into Jeremy’s shirt. Gross. Two, Jeremy’s chest was moving strangely beneath him, and his breathing sounded soft and shallow, hitching sporadically.

Michael’s eyes snapped open. The soft light of the bedside lamp still lit the room, casting hazy double shadows on the walls. He lifted his head to look up at Jeremy, and realized with a start that the boy had tears pooling in his eyes, a few fat drops already tracing their way down his cheeks. His breaths were shaky, lips pressed tight together in an attempt to stay quiet.

“…Jeremy?” said Michael, soft as he could manage. Jeremy still jumped, surprised to see Michael staring up at him. With growing alarm, Michael rose up on an elbow to get a better look at his face. “Jeremy, what’s wrong?”

Jeremy’s gaze looked far away, like he was struggling to focus on Michael’s words. His face, so pale just moments ago, was starting to color, pink blossoming high on his cheekbones and at the tips of his ears. “It’s….it’s just, uh –” And to Michael’s surprise, he grinned apologetically. Jeremy then nodded toward the book still held open in his right hand. Michael could see that he was much farther along than he’d been earlier that evening. He looked back at Jeremy.

“I’m at the bit where…the bit where Frodo’s finally f-free of the ring, and they go out onto the mountain to d-die, and they’re just…” The tears were drying, now, replaced by a full-on blush which was darkening by the second. “Sam’s just happy Frodo’s himself again, and Frodo’s just glad to they’re together, a-and I just…”

“Oh,” whispered Michael, realizing they’d been whispering the whole time. There was no one home to wake up, but it didn’t feel right to disturb the still quiet that was still settled around them. “Oh my _god_.” He shifted up on the bed to hover over Jeremy’s face, hand coming up so he could brush at tearstained cheeks with a gentle thumb. “That is _so_ …”  Michael shook his head, smiling dopily.

Jeremy smiled back, laughing and sinking deeper into the mattress below him as if to shirk Michael’s gaze. “So lame, I know,” he said, laughing awkwardly. His eyes drifted back to Michael’s, a little unsure.

“I was gonna say ‘fucking adorable,’ but yeah, you know what, ‘lame,’ let’s go with that–” Michael broke off into a snort as Jeremy’s face contorted into a pout. 

“C’mon, man! He _carried_ him up the mountain, Sauron almost _saw_ them, there was a lot of emotional build-up!”

Michael was still giggling. “But you knew what would happen! We’ve only seen the movie about a hundred times!”

“Sh-shut up. It’s different! Besides, I didn’t say anything when I saw you go teary-eyed when we finished playing _Left Behind_ ,” Jeremy whined, sitting up.

“You were crying, then, too!” exclaimed Michael indignantly. “Plus, we weren’t dating then. We couldn’t have just…hugged it out.”

“Yeah, said Jeremy vaguely, clearly still a little lost in Middle Earth. “I guess not.” They sat silently for a few minutes as Jeremy’s breathing evened out.

“Hey, Mikey?”

Michael’s breath caught. Jeremy rarely called him that. He used to hate it, but the softness with which Jeremy had said it made Michael melt a little inside. “Yeah, Jerm?”

Jeremy’s eyes were still a little wet when he gazed down at Michael. “I’m glad we can, now. Y’know, hug it out.”

Michael smiled. Before he could think about it too much, he swung a knee over Jeremy’s legs so he was straddling his lap and pulled the boy into an embrace. “So ‘m I,” he said, sinking into the hug as Jeremy unfroze and wrapped his own arms around Michael in return.

They stayed like that for a long time. When Jeremy finally pulled back, it was to coax Michael into a sweet kiss that left him a little dizzy. Both smiling madly, a little awed at the fragile thing still blossoming between them, they sank back down under the covers and fell asleep in each other’s arms.


End file.
